The Environmental Club participated in International Coastal Cleanup Day on Sept. 23 by volunteering for a beach cleanup at Will Rogers State Beach. The cleanup, hosted by environmental organization “Heal the Bay,” collected over 15,000 pounds of trash through the combined effort of thousands of volunteers from all over Los Angeles (LA) County.
Environmental Club leader Elizabeth Johnstone ’24 said the clean-up not only removed large amounts of waste, but also taught volunteers about the importance of coastal ecosystems and the damage human consumption is causing.
“Besides the immediate service impact, Coastal Cleanup Day plays such an important role in educating Angelenos about first-world consumption and the broken waste system that so badly degrades our coasts,” Johnstone said. “Heal the Bay made sure that each volunteer listened to a 10-minute talk beforehand to learn about the storm drain system, plastic consumption and why our coasts house essential ecosystems and play crucial roles in migratory patterns.”
Initially, the Environmental Club planned to host both a habitat restoration event at the Ballona Wetlands in addition to their beach cleanup, but due to logistical issues, students who signed up for that habitat restoration joined the beach cleanup. Volunteer Dhara Jobrani ’26 said despite the last minute change, he still enjoyed participating and learned more about the impact littering has on LA’s oceans.
“Although it was hot and the last minute location switch threw me off, it was fun and the leaders were very nice,” Jobrani said. “I learned that litter from the city gets into the sewers when it rains and drains out to sea, which is why it’s important to pick up trash at the beach.”
Environmental Club Leader Kate Beckerman ’25 said she appreciated meeting other students who participate in clean-ups and are passionate about environmental causes.
“The most memorable part of the experience was definitely getting to know more people in our community who are passionate about helping the planet ,” Beckerman said. “It sometimes feels like [club leaders] are the only ones who really care about helping the environment and it’s nice to know that there are others in our community who feel the same way.”
Beckerman said she hopes that events like Coastal Cleanup Day will spread awareness throughout the school community regarding important environmental issues.
“We also hope that even by hosting these events and getting the word out about them, we are raising awareness of these pressing issues which is important within itself, even if people don’t actually participate in the clean up,” Beckerman said. .